Former Barbados Umpire Nigel Harrison Dies Aged 77

West Indies news

ESPNcricinfo staff

December 19, 2011

Nigel Harrison, the former Barbados first-class umpire, has died aged 77 after a brief illness. He stood in Shell Shield and Red Stripe Cup matches through the 1980s. His last first-class game was a tour match during England's tour of the West Indies in 1990.

He also served as the president and treasurer of the Barbados Cricket Umpires Association (BCUA). He was also a former Managing Director of Corbin Compton, a leading local advertising company.

"He was a good umpire. I don't think he ever had a bad report. He knew the game and was always very involved in the training of new umpires," Lloyd Barker, a former international umpire, told the Barbados Cricket Association website.

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Sarwan slams Guyana Cricket Board

West Indies domestic news

ESPNcricinfo staff

December 7, 2011

Ramnaresh Sarwan, the West Indies batsman, has hit out at the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) for leaving him out of its team for next month's Caribbean Twenty20 Championship.

Guyana announced their 14-man squad on December 6 and the board said in a statement that Sarwan had not been selected because they were not certain he would be fit to play. Sarwan, however, said he had personally kept the board updated on his recovery

"First of all, I would like to make it crystal clear that I have recovered from my injury and I am working on my match fitness," Sarwan told the Caribbean Media Corporation. In regards to the board being unsure about my recent injury, I say that is total c**p.

"I had spoken to the president of the board [Ramsey Ali] and informed him about the status of my injury, I had also spoken to the chairman of selectors, Mr. Reyon Griffith, and so from that point of view they were well informed."

The injury had forced Sarwan to miss West Indies' tour of Bangladesh and India, and he has not played competitive cricket for almost five months. In addition to Sarwan's injury issues, the GCB said that he had not played in the domestic T20 tournament that was used to pick the CT20 squad.

Sarwan, who is currently in Canada, accused the GCB of being inconsistent with their selection policy, since he had not played the domestic tournament leading up to the Super50 one-day series back in October either.

"When I was named in the 14 to represent Guyana in the 50-over tournament, I also did not play in the inter-county competition which was used to pick that team," Sarwan said. "Everyone knew how hard I worked with the trainers and everybody in Guyana and how much I wanted to play in the 50-over competition. I am wondering why we couldn't go through the same process?

"I got the experts who treated me to send an e-mail to me which I forwarded to the GCB on the status of my injury. I think it's important for them (GCB) to release that letter to the public so they can see the latest update on my injury."

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Ramdin appointed Trinidad and Tobago captain

West Indies news

ESPNcricinfo staff

November 18, 2011

Denesh Ramdin, the West Indies wicketkeeper, has taken over from Daren Ganga as captain of the Trinidad and Tobago team for the 2011-12 domestic season in the Caribbean. Ganga led the side for nine years and received much praise for his leadership, before stepping down earlier this month. Ramdin's appointment was announced via a media release issued by the T&T cricket board.

Ramdin, currently in India on tour with West Indies, made his first-class debut in 2003-04 and has since played 42 Tests and 84 ODIs. At one point, he was vice-captain of the West Indies team but lost his place in the side; the first-choice wicketkeeper in Tests now is Carlton Baugh. He made a return to the national squad for the tour of Bangladesh earlier this year, and even led West Indies in the first ODI in the absence of Darren Sammy.

"Ramdin has a wide range of experience and is a very calm character. He has been training in the captaincy role at the youth level over the years, and he is well poised to take the baton and run with it," Dudnath Ramkessoon, the chairman of national selectors and the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board, was quoted as saying in the Trinidad and Tobago Express.

"Ramdin has been a key member in the [T&T] team over the years. He has been around for a while and he has grown with some of the players. They will play as a unit. He will have the support of the players and of the management staff."

Ramdin and the rest of the members of the T&T squad who are currently in India are expected to return to the Caribbean in mid-December, and prepare for the Caribbean Twenty20 that starts on January 9.

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Daren Ganga steps down as T&T captain

West Indies domestic news

ESPNcricinfo staff

November 13, 2011

Daren Ganga has resigned as the captain of the Trinidad & Tobago national team with immediate effect after nine-years at the helm. He made the announcement in a press release issued on Saturday.

"It is with great humility and a deep sense of gratitude that I announce my resignation from the post of captain of the Trinidad and Tobago team, a position I have held with pride, passion and commitment over the last nine seasons," Ganga said. "One of the most fulfilling aspects of my captaincy was the opportunity to contribute to Trinidad and Tobago's rise from the lower tiers of West Indian cricket to the regional powerhouse it is today."

Ganga steps down as the country's most successful captain so far, leading the team to multiple championships during his tenure, including back-to-back WICB 50-Over Championship in 2008 and 2009, the Stanford 20/20 in 2008 and Caribbean T20 earlier this year. He also led the team to the finals of the first Champions League T20 in 2009. This season, in addition to winning the T20 tournament, T&T also reached the semi-finals of the Regional Four-Day Tournament and were beaten finalists in the Regional Super50.

According to Ganga, "the emergence of a pool of potential leaders within the team" led him to conclude that now was the right time for him to give up the captaincy. However, he remains committed to the side and offered his support to whoever takes his place.

"I wish to make it abundantly clear that I am not retiring from cricket and I continue to make myself available for selection on the national cricket team and pledge my support to the new captain."

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Jamaica Have Won West Indies Domestic One-Day Title

Jamaica v Trinidad &Tobago, Regional Super50 final

ESPNcricinfo staff

October 30, 2011

Jamaica 122 for 5 (Lambert 30*) beat Trinidad & Tobago 118 (Miller 3-19) by five wickets

Jamaica have won West Indies' domestic one-day competition for the first time since 2007-08, beating Trinidad & Tobago comfortably in the final. It was another low-scoring game at Providence, and Jamaica's captain Chris Gayle used his spinners to dismiss T&T for 118. The batsmen stuttered early in the chase but Tamar Lambert and Shawn Findlay made sure Jamaica got home in the 36th over.

Before the spinners choked T&T, Jamaica were given a bright start through two early wickets from Andre Russell, the West Indies allrounder. Russell had Justin Guillen edging a wide delivery to the wicketkeeper in the fourth over and then got William Perkins to mistime an attempted lofted drive to mid-off.

Left-arm spinner Nikita Miller was introduced as early as the ninth over and struck in his second over, knocking back Dwayne Bravo's off stump. Miller had Daren Ganga lbw in the 15th over and T&T were in deep trouble at 30 for 4. Jason Mohammed showed some intent with a couple of fours off Gayle's offspin and put together 44 runs for the fifth wicket with Sherwin Ganga. Once Ganga was dismissed by Gayle, the rest of the wickets tumbled quickly. Miller picked up another wicket to finish with figures of 12-2-19-3, and legspinner Odean Brown took two wickets as well.

The target was a small one but Jamaica were given an early jolt when Kennar Lewis was trapped in front by Sunil Narine off the second ball of the chase. Xavier Marshall was next to be dismissed, lbw to Sherwin Ganga and when Samuel Badree dismissed Gayle, also lbw, Jamaica were tottering at 31 for 3. Danza Hyatt took his time, facing 78 balls for his 29 runs, and got Jamaica back on track. Tamar Lambert was also watchful, scoring 30 not out of 54 balls, and Shawn Findlay finished things with a flourish, scoring the winning runs with a boundary of Sherwin Ganga.

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Last Pair of Jamaica Takes Them Into The Final

Guyana v T&T, Regional Super50 semi-final, Providence

ESPNcricinfo staff

October 27, 2011

Jamaica's last pair came together with their team needing 13 runs off as many balls, and held their nerve to take their side into the final with one ball remaining. It was heartbreak for the Sagicor High Performance Centre at Providence Stadium in Guyana, as Krishmar Santokie (8*) and Odean Brown (5*) put the seal on a match they had set up with the ball earlier, when they picked up a combined 5 for 81 in 22 overs to derail the HPC innings.

Santokie did the early damage, striking three times in his first spell to reduce HPC to 23 for 3 in the seventh over. Devon Thomas stemmed the rot with a defiant 33 off 69 balls, before Brown and Nikita Miller made middle-order incisions to reduce HPC to a sorry 84 for 7. Veerasammy Permaul and Keron Cottoy hung in gamely to add 57 for the eighth wicket and lead their side to a fighting 176 for 9 in 50 overs.

Jamaica lost their talismanic captain Chris Gayle early, and were thereafter consigned to a very slow start. When Tamar Lambert was out at 103 for 4 in the 37th over, the innings was devoid of momentum and was fast losing resources too. Jason Holder struck three quick blows to make it 130 for 7 in the 43rd over, and Jamaica seemed to be on their way out of the tournament. Andre Russell counterpunched in typical fashion with 24 off 14 balls to take the score to 164 by the time he was eighth man out in the 47th over.

When Miller was dismissed nine balls later, without addition to the score, HPC seemed set to make the final, but Santokie and Brown were about to ruin their day. With three needed off two balls, Brown smashed Nkrumah Bonner for a straight boundary to push Jamaica into the final at the same ground on October 29, where they will meet Trinidad & Tobago.

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Gayle in Jamaica squad for Regional Super50

2011-12 Regional Super50

Personal ESPNcricinfo

October 5, 2011

Chris Gayle, the former captain of the West Indies, named after the Jamaican team in the Super50 competition in the Caribbean region.

Gayle and WICB have been on the edge of much of this year. He has not played for West Indies since the end of the 2011 World Cup. He took part in the IPL, following the World Cup after being omitted from a training camp ahead of the series at home against Pakistan. In an interview with Sports KLAS powerful, he had asked his treatment by members of the board, including CEO Ernest Hilaire, Ottis Gibson and coach after he had picked up an injury during the Cup world.

He was then involved in negotiations with the advice, but the dispute continues. Consequently, it also failed to West Indies team for the Tour of Bangladesh.

It is not yet clear whether Gayle will be in charge of Jamaica. The appointment of a captain, would have to be ratified by the WICB. Jamaica is not Marlon Samuels drummer wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh and services, which will be out of national service.

"It's a balanced team where you look. We have considered the place of Guyana and the lands of the state," Bennett Junior, the coach of Jamaica, has been quoted by the Jamaica Observer.

General Dance Shoes Andre Russell and Hyatt are expected to join the team in Jamaica after completing a limited leg movement in Bangladesh tour.

The tournament begins on 19 October Guyana.

Jamaica squad: Chris Gayle, Shawn Findlay, Tamar Lambert, Chadwick Walton, Nikita Miller, Yannick Elliott, Odean Brown, Andrew Richardson, Jerome Taylor, Krishmar Santok, Xavier Marshall, Simon Jackson, Jermaine Blackwood, Kenar Lewis.

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Changes to Windies domestic 50-over tournament

Caribbean News

Staff ESPNcricinfo

September 16, 2011

The over-50 national tournament in the Netherlands Antilles will undergo several changes, with the board to include some of the changes it was decided to form an international game at the ICC annual conference in Hong Kong earlier this year. In addition, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has made some changes to the.

For starters, the competition was renamed the Regional Super50. Two balls will be used at each entrance, with opening bowlers from a new ball at each end. The batting and bowling digital benefits will be taken between 16 and 40 acquisitions.

While these changes are in line with changes in the CPI in ODIs, there are a couple of other innovations. Two players from each side be allowed to bowl 12 overs each. The rest, as is the case for all bowlers in the 50-over format, will be entitled to a maximum of 10. In addition, the need for large receiver rule will be removed restrictions on the ground and a maximum of four field players (instead of five as is the current standard) are allowed outside the circle of 30 meters in the non-Powerplay overs.

The Super50 Regional will be played in Guyana from October 18 to 29. Barbados and the Leeward Islands are the winners of the ruling house of 50 sets in the tournament, after a year linked to Jamaica last final.

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